Many sporting activities involve swinging some type of an implement such as golf clubs, bats, tennis rackets, or some type of body part such as a leg (e.g., football place kickers). In these types of sporting activities, significant efforts have been expended to develop and refine the associated swing techniques in order to achieve the "best" results on a consistent basis. For instance, in golf enumerable theories have been developed over time relating to the "proper" positioning of the hands and feet at address and throughout the swing, the "proper" posture of the body (e.g., the inclination of the back relative to the legs, the amount of flex in the knees), and the "proper" plane upon which the hands and club head should travel during the swinging motion.
Swing training devices have been developed to expedite the implementation of the swing mechanics associated with the various swing theories in sports. For instance, there are golf training devices which assist the golfer in achieving a repetitive swing by attempting to develop the correct muscle memory associated with a given swing theory. One such device defines the optimum plane for the swing, while another type is designed to maintain the positioning of the arms in a particular orientation throughout the swing. Although these types of golf training devices may be useful, they often fail to take into account the individual characteristics and nuances of each person's natural swing. Other golf training devices simply indicate visually the speed of the club as it passes a given point, the position of the club head at impact, the distance the ball would travel, and/or the ball's direction. Although these devices generate relevant information, they provide only visual feedback which does not assist an individual in developing a "feel" for the swing or how to achieve this "feel." Moreover, in some instances visual feedback devices can actually interfere with "proper" head motion and/or with the individual's concentration on an object, such as a ball.
Due to the large volume of literature which is available on the various swing techniques and training devices such as those discussed above, many individuals have become so enthralled by "swing mechanics" that they have not only lost sight of the primary objective (i.e., to make solid contact with a ball and propel it in a desired direction), but they have also become disconnected with the "feel" of the natural swinging motion. For instance, regardless of which theory is adopted by a particular individual in these types of sports, one important variable always present for achieving the "best" and most consistent results is the acceleration of the given sports implement through the impact zone. One alternative for producing this increase in velocity is for the person to "release" the sports implement at some optimum point during the swing by the action of the wrists and/or hands. The teaching of the release associated with certain sports has been somewhat difficult and it is even more difficult for the individual to develop a "feel" for this releasing action.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,758,117 to Harrison, issued Sep. 11, 1973, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,378 to Backus, issued Mar. 18, 1986, both generally disclose golf training devices which may be attached to a lower portion of the shaft of a golf club to attempt to force the user's hands to release the club in the desired manner. For instance, Harrison discloses an airfoil having a longitudinal axis which is substantially parallel to the shaft. The orientation of the airfoil may be altered to "control" the motion of th hands by providing wind resistance during the swinging motion. Backus discloses an inertia attachment device having an arm which is detachably connected to the club shaft on one end while a weight is positioned on its opposite end. The orientation of the weight is adjustable so as to exert a force which pulls the club head, and therefore the user's hands, through on the swing (i.e., it forces the person to release the golf club). Although these types of attachable devices may perform a useful function, the attachment of such devices to a club may adversely affect the weight of the club. Consequently, the "feel" or muscle memory developed when using the club with the device attached thereto may not necessarily equate to the "feel" of the club when not using the device.
A number of other devices currently available do not address physically forcing the development of the user's swing, more particularly, the wrist/hand action, but provide other types of feedback to develop a "feel" for the release. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 1,519,052 to Reach, issued Dec. 9, 1924, generally discloses an indicator for a golf club which generally includes a tubular member having a reed positioned therein. The detachable device is positioned on the lower portion of the shaft of a golf club on the back portion of the shaft of the club (i.e., on a side opposite the club face). In the event the user takes the club back too fast on the backswing, the reed vibrates and generates a sound to notify the user of this "undesirable" condition, thereby effectively failing to recognize that innumerable tempos have been used in golf over the years to produce consistently desirable results. However, there is no disclosure that the reed provides any type of audible feedback after the backswing (i.e., there is no disclosed audible feedback when swinging the club through the impact zone).
U.S. Pat. No. 2,823,037 to Ferte, issued Feb. 11, 1958, generally discloses a vibratory impulse generator for a golf club. More particularly, Ferte discloses a training or practice golf club (i.e., one which is solely designated for training purposes), which generally has an insert positioned in the face of the training club. A rotatable vertical shaft is included within the insert which has a vane structure attached thereto. Secured to the bottom portion of this shaft is a gear-like structure having a number of teeth. Laterally displaced from the vertical shaft on opposite sides are a pair of wires, pivotally connected near the lower portions thereof, which have one free end which is engageable with the gear teeth and a second free end which is deflectable between two laterally displaced anvils. When the training club is swung, the vane structure rotates the shaft which in turn rotates the gear. Rotation of the gear deflects and moves the ends of the two wires as the teeth intermittently contact the wires, thereby pivoting the wires and causing the movement of the opposite ends to engage the anvils to produce an audible knocking sound. The disclosure also indicates that the user is also provided with a vibratory impulse during the golf swing.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,776,556 to McLaughlin, issued Dec. 4, 1973, discloses another golf club swing training device which utilizes two different pitched whistles to provide user feedback. The detachable device includes a tear-shaped body member having two skewed channels, each of which contain a whistle of a different pitch. The channels and whistles are positioned such that if the user has an inside-out golf swing, one of the whistles will provide sound to feed back information to the user that an "incorrect" swingpath has been used. In the event the user has an outside-in swing, a different pitch whistle sounds to indicate an "incorrect" swingpath. Consequently, if the user swings along the "correct path", no noise feedback is provided.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,848,873 to Linning, issued Nov. 19, 1974, generally discloses a device for indicating acceleration of sports equipment. The device is detachably connectable to a golf club shaft and it may be adjusted to provide noise feedback, but only after a certain predetermined acceleration is achieved during the swing. When this desired acceleration during the swing is achieved, a hammer-like member is released to hit an anvil to provide the user with noise feedback. However, if the desired acceleration is not reached, no noise feedback is ever provided by the device. Moreover, the device does not enhance the development of a smooth swing.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, there remains a need for a swing training device which provides the user with a true "feel" of the swing without forcing the user to swing according to some specified swing theory. Moreover, there is a need for such a swing training device which may be easily attached to a standard implement used in sports without requiring any significant installation tools of any kind. Furthermore, there is a need for such a device which may be detachably connected to a given sports implement such that the sports implement can be retained for normal use in the given sporting activity. In addition, there is a need for such a device which will not appreciably change either the weight or "feel" of the sports implement.